Olivier Giroud will no longer worry about his future at Chelsea as the club has finally extended his stay at the club until the end of the 2020-2021 season. The contract of the 33-year-old French international with Chelsea ought to expire this summer but Frank Lampard, the coach of the side, won’t let that happen.
Giroud who is one of the few players at Chelsea above 30, wanted to leave Lampard’s team in January because of lack of playing time. Lampard always prefers to player less experienced Tammy Abraham ahead of the FIFA World Cup-winning striker.
He was so unsettled at the club that he wanted to leave but Lampard refused to let him go because he couldn’t find a replacement for the former Arsenal striker. Giroud finally got back his chance in Chelsea‘s first team later in the year when Tammy Abraham got injured. While he was enjoying the moments of first-team football, coronavirus pandemic halted the season.
“I am delighted to continue my journey and adventure at Chelsea,” Giroud told the club’s website after signing the contract extension.
“I can’t wait to get back to playing and enjoying competitive football with my team-mates. I’m looking forward to wearing the Chelsea shirt again, especially in front of our fans at a full Stamford Bridge, whenever it is safe to do so.”
Since Giroud joined Chelsea from Arsenal in 2018, he has played for the north London club 76 times and scored 21 goals. Lampard has always praised the personality of the Frenchman. The coach described Giroud as being “brilliant as a professional and as a man in general”.
“He has great qualities to help the squad both on and off the pitch, not only with his talent but with the example he sets every day and the experience he brings to our young squad”, Lampard added. “I am very pleased that will continue next season.”
Unlike Olivier Giroud, Willian is still unsettled
Meanwhile, Willian is still unsettled at Chelsea, unlike Giroud and Chelsea’s goalkeeper Willy Caballero who have extended their contracts by a year.
The current contract of the 31-year-old Brazilian football star with Chelsea will expire this summer but the negotiations between the two parties are not concrete yet. Willian wants Chelsea to extend his contract by three years which is against Chelsea’s policy of giving players above 30 years just a year contract.
To show how spacial Willian has been to the club, the club offered him two years contract extension but he turned it down, saying it is either three years deal or nothing. This could end up making him leave Chelsea as a free agent if no agreement is reached before the end of June.
